Early hominids ate tropical grasses and sedges

Published on December 20th, 2012 | by Sevaan Franks

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A new study has revealed that early hominids who lived 3.5 million years ago had a diet that mainly consisted of tropical grasses and sedges.

 

Professor Lee-Thorp, a specialist in isotopic analyses of fossil tooth enamel, from the Research Laboratory for Archaeology and the History of Art, said: “We found evidence suggesting that early hominins, in central Africa at least, ate a diet mainly composed of tropical grasses and sedges. No African great apes, including chimpanzees, eat this type of food despite the fact it grows in abundance in tropical and subtropical regions. The only notable exception is the savannah baboon which still forages for these types of plants today. We were surprised to discover that early hominins appear to have consumed more than even the baboons.”

[Full story]

Story: ScienceDaily | Photo: Timur1970, Fotolia

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